


Don't Ever Look Back

by IprotectKennyP (dauntperplexity)



Series: Pimms Week 2019 [1]
Category: Check Please! (Webcomic)
Genre: Communication, Concussions, Gen, Hospitals, Temporary Amnesia
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-08-19
Updated: 2019-08-19
Packaged: 2020-09-07 07:54:01
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,567
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20306035
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/dauntperplexity/pseuds/IprotectKennyP
Summary: "Jack," Alicia said, taking a step forward. "Honey. What year is it?""2009.""Oh my god," she said softly."What?""Jack," Bob said slowly. "It's... it's 2018.





	Don't Ever Look Back

**Author's Note:**

> Written for Day 1 of Pimms Week!
> 
> Hospital
> 
> -Not beta read. I'll do some edits once the week is over.

The first person he saw when he opened his eyes was his mom.

It took him a few minutes to realize that it was actually his mom because, somehow, in a flash, she had aged a decade. After a moment of processing, he looked over to the other person in his room. The same thing had happened to his dad.

What the hell happened?

After eating a few ice chips, he looked around the hospital room as they waited for the rest of the doctor to come and check on him.

"Where's Kenny?" he asked. He frowned when he heard the sound of his voice. The concussion must've really messed him up or he had to have been out for some time with how rumbly his voice was.

"Kenny?" Bob said.

"Yeah. Where is he? Why wouldn't he be here?"

"Jack," Alicia said. "Why would Kent be here?"

"Because he's always here. Every time I've gotten hurt this season, he's been here. And you two wouldn’t let him go to the house by himself." He watched his parents look at each other. He didn't know what the looks on their faces meant. "What?"

"Jack," Alicia said, taking a step forward. "Honey. What year is it?"

"2009."

"Oh my god," she said softly.

"What?"

"Jack," Bob said slowly. "It's... it's 2018."

Jack's eyes went wide. "Wh-what?" He blinked a few times and would've shaken his head if it wasn't hurting. "No, no, no," he said softly. He didn’t want to believe it. He brought his hands up and pressed his palms against his eyes. "Get out," he said softly. He needed a few minutes alone.

"Jack."

"Get out!"

"The doctor needs to—"

"The next person walking through that door better be Kenny."

"Jack. He's on the west coast, right now."

"I don't care! Get him and get out!" He needed some time. And he needed Kent.

Jack was grateful that his parents actually listened and walked out of the room without saying a thing. He flopped back onto his pillows and stared at the ceiling.

Were his parents actually telling him the truth? Did he actually lose almost ten years?

He sighed and shut his eyes as he tried to make his way through everything that had just happened in the last ten minutes.

He opened his eyes after ten minutes and looked around. The hospital didn't look familiar. And his parents were so much older than the last time he saw them. And his voice.

He held up his arm and saw that there was a lot more muscle than he remembered having. He sighed and pulled the blanket up and rolled over. He wanted to see Kenny, but it didn't seem like that was going to happen soon.

Instead, he shut his eyes and forced himself to go to sleep. Luckily, it didn't take long for him to do so.

He opened his eyes when he heard the door open. He looked at the nearest clock before rolling over and saw that he had slept through the night. And then some.

He looked over expecting his parents, or a doctor. The person was neither of those two options.

"Jesus," Kent said, standing in the doorway of the hospital room.

"K-Kenny?" Jack asked softly. His eyes were wide as he stared at the man, Kent, standing so far away from him. If he didn't believe what his parents had told him then, after seeing Kent, he had no choice but to do so.

Kent had grown.

And instead of his cute teammate with a sometimes squeaky voice who would sit it in his lap, now he was unbelievably hot.

"H-hey. Hey, Jack."

"You're... you're older. And... buffer. Are... are you taller than me?"

Kent couldn't help but laugh. "No. I'm not. Never really had a shot at that." He stayed where he was standing. "So, the Zimmer-rents filled me in on what's going on. You think it's our last year in the Q?"

Jack nodded. He licked his lips wanting nothing more than for Kent to be closer. "Why... why are you still standing over there?"

"Saftey precaution," Kent said.

"From what?"

"Just things, Jack," Kent said.

"Jack?"

"That's your name. Your mom didn't say you forgot your name."

"I know my name, Kenny. I just... you don't call me that."

Kent's eyes widened. "Wow," he said softly. "You... you really don't remember, do you?"

Jack shook his head. "Can you... help me? Remember, I mean?"

Kent sighed. "If you want me to help you, it's probably best if I stay here."

"Kenny," he said. "It can't be that bad."

"Oh, it can," Kent said. He stepped into the room, grabbed one of the chairs, and parked himself next to Jack's bed. He was far enough away that Jack couldn't reach out and touch him. "I'm just... well, I'm here."

"You always promised you'd be," he said. "I guess that had to change because we play on different sides of the country?"

"Yeah, sure," Kent said. "That's... that's why."

Jack furrowed his brow as he listened to Kent. He didn’t sound like he was being completely honest with him. "Kenny," he said, looking over and saw that Kent was just out of reach. That had to have been planned. "You always told me you'd tell me the truth. It's how you kept me in check."

"God, that was so long ago," Kent said with a nervous laugh.

"So, you're not gonna tell me why you're acting weird?"

Kent shook his head. "Not if you want me to keep sitting here with you," he said softly.

Jack frowned again. "What did I do?"

"What?" Kent said, turning to stare at Jack. "You. You didn't do anything, Jack."

"That sounds like complete bullshit," Jack said. "Especially since you haven't called me Zimms since you got here."

"We just. We kinda just outgrew the nicknames," Kent said softly.

"Bullshit," Jack said. He sat up and pushed a button to adjust the bed and help him get comfortable. "Tell me. Everything."

"Jack."

"I'll know if you keep something from me."

Kent sighed. He ran his hand down his face. "This... this could take all day.."

Jack shrugged. "Yeah," he said. "Well. I kicked everyone out until I saw you. So. I'll be here for a little bit." He looked over at Kent and smiled gently. "So. Tell me. Did we win the Memer?"

Kent let out a laugh. "Yeah. We did. We kicked ass," he said with a soft smile.

Nearly five hours later, with a thirty minute break in between, because the doctors really needed to check on Jack, Kent finished telling their story with as much detail as he could. For the last hour of the tale, Kent kept his eyes down staring at the floor or at his lap. He hadn't looked up for some time.

The two of them hadn't said a word to each other for about ten minutes.

"Where were you?" Jack finally asked.

"What... what do you mean?"

"Before you were here, where were you?"

"Oh," Kent said. "We played the Kings last night. We got a day off, then a two-day homestand. I think your dad did a weird thing about pulling rank and called the higher-ups and made it okay for me to fly here."

Jack nodded, then stayed silent for two more minutes. "So. After everything I did. You still dropped everything and came here."

Kent let out a solemn laugh. "Yeah," he said softly. "Kinda sad, right?"

"Well. I appreciate it."

"Your parents were kinda freaking out. Besides. You know. You and hospitals."

"I don't know, actually," Jack said. "But. After everything you've told me, I can understand why they were freaking out."

"Yeah," Kent said. He stood up and stretched. He had been sitting the entire time. "Well, since I checked in and you know everything, I gotta head back to Vegas."

"Wait," Jack said softly. "You're leaving?"

"Jack. You... I just told you that we aren't exactly... friends."

"I heard you."

"And when you actually remember everything, we're gonna go back to being what we were before."

"No, we won't."

"Jack."

"I won't let that happen," he said. He reached out his hand. "There was a reason that I wanted you to be here."

"Because you lost ten years and I was your best friend ten years ago."

"And you still came, even if we haven't been best friends for ten years." He wiggled his fingers. "Stay? I can leave the hospital in a couple hours. Then... I don't know. We can have dinner. And then you can tell me about everything you've done in the NHL."

"You don't want to hear that."

"I do," he said. "Because if my memory comes back, I'll know all about my career. I just want to know about yours."

"It'll bore you."

"I'm a boring person. Which you said at least once a week if I can remember."

"So, you remember that," Kent said with a laugh. He sighed and sat back down. "I guess I can fly out tomorrow."

Jack noticed that Kent had scooted the chair a little closer. He smirked when Kent put his hand in his own. He squeezed it. "So, I have to say, you look really, really good."

Kent looked up and felt his cheeks warming up. "Y-yeah," he said softly. "Thanks, Zimms. You too."

**Author's Note:**

> You can find me on tumblr at zimmboniandbitty.


End file.
